Jonathan Comey: Another split decision goes to Brady

Bill Belichick doesn't say much one way or the other on most topics of general interest, but on this one, he made it pretty clear. "There's nobody I'd rather have than Tom Brady," he said.

JONATHAN COMEY

FOXBORO — Bill Belichick doesn't say much one way or the other on most topics of general interest, but on this one, he made it pretty clear.

Asked about the place that Peyton Manning and Tom Brady occupy in NFL history, he spent a few nondescript words on the subject of their shared greatness and then offered the good stuff.

"There's nobody I'd rather have than Tom Brady," he said.

After watching the Patriots' surgical 31-21 win over Denver Sunday, there's little point in arguing that Belichick's 100 percent right.

It's not that Brady is a better QB than Manning — he's not. They both played nearly flawless games on Sunday; Manning's supporting cast held him back, Brady's helped put him forward. Over their amazing careers, which as football fans we should feel a sense of privilege in witnessing, they have produced a set of moments that have to be considered a dead heat.

But you never really believed that Brady was going to lose his "head-to-head" matchup with Manning Sunday, and he didn't. When these two quarterbacks go against each other, there's no reason to believe the greatness isn't on equal footing ... and yet, Belichick's words ring truest: "There's nobody I'd rather have than Tom Brady."

And if you realize, that no matter what the numbers say, that there's no one you'd rather have than Brady, that if he played the great Manning 100 times, Brady would win 65 or 70, then how great does that make him? The greatest of all time? The greatest of our lifetime?

It certainly makes you appreciate having been there to see it, although it doesn't make it much easier to explain.

Asked to give his best shot at explaining what makes Brady special, Wes Welker paused and let out a chuckle, as if to say "Impossible." Lineman Donald Thomas said "It sometimes can be surreal, you know, to be able to say you played with such a great quarterback in your own career. But he's a really nice guy, down to earth. It's a pleasure playing for him. You just want to keep him upright." Jerod Mayo smiled, and said "What's there to say? One of the greatest to play the game."

Of course, Manning certainly falls in the same category, which is why watching this otherwise methodical football game felt as much like a privilege as a job.

It was fun to spend an entire game watching them, on the sidelines, in the huddle, directing their offenses — maybe the secrets are all in the little things, the different ways both quarterbacks get where they need to go.

Manning is a little lumpy where Brady is smooth; the strain of the game shows on him, in the circles under his eyes, the tightening of his shoulders, the exasperation he shows. His throws are full of clutches, millisecond delays, as if he's seeing 100 scenarios at once. His interactions with teammates seem professional, not personal — famously, his Colt teammates didn't learn about Manning's twin infants (born during a season) until after the fact.

When Manning gets together with his receiver after a touchdown pass, he seems to speak in reassuring tones: "There you go, that's how you do it, nice job." When Brady does, it's with a head butt and a profane howl of intense congratulation: "YEEEEEAAAAAA!!!!" When Manning throws an interception, it's a surprise. When Brady does, it's a shock.

Brady just seems natural in all ways. The way he throws the ball, the way he interacts with teammates, the way he interacts with society as a whole. Sure, you'd be happy to have Peyton Manning, or Aaron Rodgers, or Joe Montana, or Brett Favre, but would any of them bring what Brady brings, or any better?

The thing that makes Brady special is the same thing that makes him hard to sum up. He's married to a supermodel, but he's also an everyman. He's the football grunt that works and listens and "does his job," but the guy who might be doing his job as well as anyone ever has.

Manning's class has never been questioned, nor his play. I remember his grace after many of the Colts' losses in Foxboro — some season ending, and nothing had changed Sunday. He was still facing the music long after both locker rooms had emptied out, measured, reasonable tones, sounding every bit like the head coach and quarterback all in one in his sharp blue suit, supportive of his teammates, saying all the right things.

Brady, of course, does the same. But while there's a sense of the robot to Manning, Brady still seems to have a lot of kid in him — and maybe that's why he's still so good, so likeable, so impressive after all these years.

After the game was over and he'd changed into his normal post-preppy interview attire, Brady checked his hair, offered a few quick half-hugs to teammates and clubhouse guys, snapped a towel or two, and walked to the podium.

As it turned out, Vince Wilfork was still up there, so Brady sat in the front row, wrapping his long, quarterback frame into the folding chair stiffly, looking up at Wilfork from barely two feet away.

You could see the wheels turning in Brady's mind as sat there, awkwardly, wondering what to do. Wink at his buddy, bringing Wilfork's millon-watt smile to the surface? Make a quick joke, to get a laugh from the room? Put on a look of interest to show that he was listening, taking this part of the process seriously, worried about what everyone might think?

In the end, he cast his eyes down and tuned into some private thought that we'll never be privy to, and waited his turn, patiently.

It was the right move. As always.

Jonathan Comey is sports and features editor for The Standard-Times. Email him: jcomey@s-t.com

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